Letter from John E. Starns to His Wife, Written During Civil War, June 3, 1862

Letter Written by Late John E. Starnes

Mrs. H.A. Starnes has a letter which was written by her father, the late John E. Starnes, to her mother during the war from the battlefields of Virginia. The letter has become a family heirloom. Mrs. Starnes has given it to her daughter, Mrs. Curtis Medlin, who will in turn hand it down. How tragic are these old war letters! Husbands on the field not only did not know when they might be killed, but even if not killed, they did not know when they might ever see their families again. And the anxieties of the mothers and wives at home know no bounds, for practically all the men were at the front, and news traveled slowly in those days. An occasional letter from some soldier was all that whole neighborhood had. And how welcome these letters were. The letter from Mr. Starnes to his wife, Margaret Starnes, was dated at Petersburg, Va., June 3, 1862, and reads as follows:

“Dear Companion: I now seat myself this morning to write you a few lines to let you know that I am well at this time, and hoping that when these few lines come to hand they will find you enjoying the same blessings of God. We left Goldsboro the first day of June and landed here the second, and are stationed at Petersburg. I think that this is a healthy place from the appearance of the country, and we have good water. I am better satisfied here than I was at Goldsboro, for I think it is a healthier place. Petersburg is a beautiful town, situated in a very nice place, and the largest town I ever saw.

“They have been fighting at Richmond for the last two or three days. It is said tha tour side got the best of the fight.

“We left brother William Starnes in the hospital at Goldsboro. I expected to come home at harvest but I don’t think I can get off. I want you to have my wheat taken care of if you can for you needn’t look for me at harvest. I want you to write to me as soon as you get this letter. Write to me how you are all getting along and give me the times in that country and how the prospects of crops are. I want to know whether you got my things I sent you or not. I sent one pair of shoes and one shirt and a pair of pants. Write to me whether you got them or not.

“I would like to see you all the best in the world and will come home as soon as I can. No more at present, but remember me until death.—From John E. Starnes to Margaret Starnes, at Home”

Oh, the heart breaks in those old letters!

From the front page of The Monroe Journal, August 7, 1923